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New York City Hall
New York City Mayor George Opdyke was unaware of the riots that were happening in his city on that day. He was in his office when a policeman entered and informed him that a large group of men and women were protesting against the draft and marching down Third Avenue. There were rumors that several policemen had already been injured, and the mob was hurling rocks and setting fires in buildings.
Mayor Opdyke was dumbfounded when he heard the news. He had strongly supported the Lincoln Administration’s draft policies in New York City. In fact, the Mayor blocked bills approved by the City Council that would pay the $300 fee to be exempted from the draft. He believed the majority of New York City’s citizens also supported the draft but he was mistaken. They were bitterly angry about the draft, especially the young men.
George Opdyke was afraid. He tried reaching New York Governor Seymour to ask militia troops to be brought into the city to aid his police in restoring order. Unluckily, New York Governor Seymour was on the New Jersey shore escaping from the summer heat and would be unavailable until he returned home.
Police Superintendent Kennedy requested to meet Mayor Opdyke in his office. Kennedy confirmed several police officers were injured in a confrontation with the mob. Kennedy also informed the Mayor the telegraph wires were down. He volunteered to go and see the extent of the damage caused by the rioters and report back to the Mayor. The Mayor agreed, so Kennedy slipped out the side door of the City Hall with several other plainclothes policemen. He left his superintendent’s police uniform in the mayor's office.
Kennedy went directly to the burned-out Provost Marshall’s draft office on Third Avenue. As he approached the office, a cry went up in the crowd surrounding the building:
“It’s him, its Kennedy.”
His worst fears came true. A ruffian recognized him from one of the raids he led in the Five Points neighborhood to stop illegal gambling. Kennedy pulled his hat over his face to hide, but the cry had been picked up by another rioter and then another. Several men came running down the street and began surrounding him before he could escape.
Several women began shrieking “Get him.”
Kennedy tried to push his way out and escape, but he was blocked from moving. A burly man began pummeling Kennedy in the face and knocked him to the ground. Another man began kicking Kennedy in his side, breaking several of his ribs.
Kennedy tried to cover his face, but the men held him down in a puddle of water to try and drown him. Policemen swarmed out of a nearby police station and attacked the crowd with Billy clubs and revolvers. The mob repelled them, but not before they dragged Superintendent Kennedy into the police station.
Kennedy was nearly dead when taken back to City Hall. Mayor Opdyke saw the bruised and battered Police Superintendent and became even more frantic. The Mayor and his staff decided to abandon City Hall and evacuate to the St. Nicholas Hotel due to its more imposing fortress-like structure.
When they arrived at the hotel, Mayor Opdyke summoned General Wool, the Union military commander of New York.
“Where are the troops you promised me?” He asked.
General Wool shook his head and said he was attempting to reach the New York Governor to call out the militia. But the Governor was still unavailable.
Nightfall arrived and the New York City skyline began to light up from burning buildings. A man ran into the St. Nicholas Hotel and informed Mayor Opdyke his house was ransacked and set afire. The Mayor frantically tried to telegraph Governor Seymour to ask for militia troops to quell the riots but the lines were down. He was finally able to contact him, but was informed that it was a futile gesture. Most of them had been sent to Gettysburg.
Mayor Opdyke and his staff huddled in the St. Nicholas Hotel unable to do anything to stop the rioting. Instead, they endured a long sleepless night.
